Taste and See

Coffee Shop

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Some coffee drinkers insist that decaffeinated coffee does not taste nearly as good as regular because the flavors and aromas are affected by the decaffeination process. Others have been drinking chemically decaffeinated coffee for so long that they either don’t mind the difference in taste or don’t notice it at all. Whichever group you fall into, it might be time to try Infusco’s decaf coffee and see if you can taste the difference.

All decaf coffee beans are decaffeinated when they are green – before they are roasted. Most coffee companies use what is called the direct method to decaffeinate their beans, a process that involves steaming the beans and rinsing them with chemical solvents like dichloromethane and ethyl acetate for ten hours. These chemical rinses remove the caffeine from the beans, which are then steamed for another ten hours to remove any chemical residue.

The problem with this method is that because there are hundreds of components in every coffee bean that are critical to the taste and aroma of the brew, it is difficult to isolate and extract only the caffeine. Other components are likely removed as well, and traces of the chemical solvent rinse can be left behind. This affects the way the drink tastes, and explains why some people have never met a decaf coffee that they liked.

So how do we solve this problem? Infusco purchases beans that have been decaffeinated using a method known as the Swiss Water Process. This method takes 8-10 hours, and results in flavorful coffee beans that are 99.9% caffeine free and 100% chemical free. A batch of green coffee beans are immersed in hot water, which extracts the caffeine as well as other flavors. This water, called green coffee extract, is then passed through a charcoal filter that catches only the caffeine molecules. The first batch of green coffee beans is tossed out, and the next batch goes through the same process – but instead of new, clean water, the fresh beans are immersed in the green coffee extract produced by the flavors of the first batch. This almost eliminates any loss of flavor in the second batch of beans, while removing all of the caffeine without chemicals. Pretty cool!

So next time you’re craving the taste of great coffee, but you don’t want the caffeine kick, stop by and try Infusco’s coffee decaffeinated with the Swiss Water Process!

This past weekend I had the opportunity to serve coffee at Journeyman Distillery for the Artisan Market. As I drove back to our coffee shop after the long day on my feet I was struck by a handful of things, some simple (my feet really hurt!) and some things requiring more thought and response. This blog is a result of the things requiring more response.

I love to drive and most of the time when I drive I quickly grow bored with the standard route and so I take lots of detours. Saturday night’s detour involved Flynn road and a mental detour. As my mind wandered I was caught by the days events mostly marked by the people who walked through the door at Journeyman. One by one I was greeted by people, some I knew by name, seeing them so regularly over the last three years that I was also greeted with a hug and others I only know by seeing their face regularly in our coffee shop. But when I take both of those groups of people I already feel very fortunate and blessed to be part of a community that we know as Sawyer, MI. But my thoughts went on from there…

I met a number of people that I didn’t know at all, that informed me that they had been in our coffee shop even earlier that morning or afternoon and then had come over to Journeyman to check out the Artisan market. This affected me also, because I realize that I live and own a business in a community that believes in and supports small businesses, not just mine. I owe all of you a great debt of gratitude for your faithfulness and support over the past three or four years, from coffee sampling in the tap room at Greenbush, to the extreme heat and rain of the two summers of the Coffee Cart and finally to this past summer in our brick and mortar coffee shop, I thank all of you.

There is one final group that blesses me. This group is our staff, they serve out at the counter, behind the espresso machine and in the back, next to the roaster every day. Infusco would not be what it is today without each of these individuals and there are not words to express what each of them mean to me personally and how they affect the product that we gather around every day.

Coffee for me is not just a wonderful drink that I love, but a medium that allows me to connect and interact with a community that has been gracious enough to let me join it’s rank and share in its growth. Thank you, thank you and again thank you!

Last month Infusco held it’s first Coffee Cupping in the shop, and it was a great success! Ticket buyers had a great time exploring the look, feel, and flavor of many different coffee beans and blends. If you came out for this fun evening, Infusco thanks you! If not, be sure to join us next time!

Between rounds of coffee tasting, Jeff and Tammi Brown shared about the work they will be doing in Costa Rica, which the coffee cupping helped to support. Ronny and Kari Silva also shared what they will be doing when they return to Peru. You can learn more about both families and their goals in our previous post.

Everyone in attendance was invited into the back room of the shop, where all of Infusco’s beans are roasted. Rich fired up a batch and showed examples of the coffee beans when they are received from the farms, before they are roasted.

After roasting, the beans turn a lovely brown, which was seen at the counter in both whole bean and ground forms during the cupping.

One lucky winner took home an Infusco shirt and diner mug, both of which are for sale in the coffee shop, and every one enjoyed these delicious snacks and desserts from Bit of Swiss Bakery.